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Manhattan and NYC sewer manhole investigations

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2026-10-09 21:10 UTC → 2026-10-12 23:58 UTC · added ~~removed~~

The NYPD is investigating a series of incidents involving individuals emerging from manholes across New York City. The most recent event, captured on video, occurred around 4:00 a.m. on August 18 near the intersection of 32nd Street and Seventh Avenue, close to Penn Station and Madison Square Garden in Manhattan. The footage shows three individuals in black overalls and headlamps exiting the underground infrastructure before fleeing the scene. These sightings follow similar reports in Brooklyn neighborhoods, including Williamsburg and Gravesend, as well as in Astoria, Queens. Detectives believe these individuals may be “scavengers” searching the city’s extensive sewer network for valuables such as jewelry or lost wallets. Investigators have also noted a potential link to migrants searching for items within the sewage system. On a Monday morning in mid-September, a new incident was reported in Middle Village, Queens, near the intersection of Juniper Boulevard South and 74th Street. An individual, believed to be in his 20s and wearing a red and black bandana, was spotted emerging from a manhole around 4:00 a.m. He reportedly fled the scene alongside four other men who were surrounding the sewer. No arrests were made following this encounter. On Wednesday, September 24, police investigated an incident on Manhattan’s Upper East Side near Park Avenue and East 61st Street. Three individuals were seen climbing out of a sewer after reportedly entering the system through a subway access gate at East 63rd Street and Fifth Avenue. Surveillance footage showed the men fleeing in a silver sedan and a four-door vehicle. Authorities believe the group was searching for lost valuables or copper to resell. On Sunday, October 12, three men were observed entering a manhole on West 141st Street in the Hamilton Heights neighborhood of Manhattan; they disappeared before officers arrived.

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